Tale of Love
by Sadako- Tokumei Kibou
Summary: Granddaughter Pan wants a bedtime story, so Chi-Chi tells her the story of how she fell in love with Goku.


Just a cute, little story about love and a hope for the future. Enjoy. ^_^

Disclaimer: It's a shame I don't own DBZ.

**Tale of Love**

"Lala…skipping up the stairs to bed… Lala, try not to fall and bust your head…"

Four-year-old Son Pan continued humming her song as she headed upstairs. She had enjoyed a nice evening filled with fun activities and a delicious dinner. And at this moment, she had finished brushing her teeth and taking a warm bath. Ready for bed at last, she took the route to the guest bedroom on the upper floor.

"Hmhm…cuz if you do, it'll be the end for you…"

Her grandmother was following closely behind, smiling absentmindedly at her song. She was going to accompany Pan to the guest bedroom. Pan often slept there whenever Videl or Gohan dropped her off for a visit.

Skipping down the hallway frivolously, the girl led the way to the familiar guest bedroom. Already clad in a pair of purple pajamas, the raven-haired child jumped into bed, waiting for her grandmother to tuck her in. Chi-Chi came to the bedside and took the blankets to cover Pan. Tucking them snugly against the child's body, Chi-Chi pulled them up to Pan's chin.

Smiling with love, she said softly, "Goodnight, Pan. I'll see you in the morning."

Chi-Chi turned out the light switch on the wall and turned on a small, green nightlight. She began to leave the bedroom, but just as she was about to close the door behind her, a voice interrupted her.

"Wait, Obaasan!" Pan protested, sitting up.

Chi-Chi turned back, a questioning look on her face. "Yes, what is it, Pan? You want Mr. Fluffums?" She gestured toward a plump, stuffed bear on the dresser.

Pan smiled. "Yeah," she said.

Turning on the lights, Chi-Chi fulfilled the child's request, handing the soft and beloved bear to her. She rose to leave again. She took a step, but Pan stopped her again.

"One more thing, Obaasan!"

Chi-Chi turned back again. "Hm?"

She saw her granddaughter gazing innocently at her; her large eyes shining and full of pleading hope. Patting Mr. Fluffums' head, Pan asked, "Please tell me a story?" Chi-Chi smiled, unable to resist yet another request. Walking over to the nearby dresser, she picked up a colorful storybook and headed back to the bedside.

Pan eagerly scooted over, giving her grandmother room to sit. She looked up at the older woman, awaiting a fabulous tale. Chi-Chi opened the book, turning several pages before choosing a story. "Okay… Once upon a time-"

"No, no, Obaasan!" Pan interrupted, shaking her head fiercely. "I don't wanna story from that book. 'Tousan and 'Kaasan already told me all the stories in that book."

She held up three fingers. "Twice." Sitting up straight, the child tried to appear solemn. Looking her grandmother in the eyes, she declared, "I want a story from you."

Chi-Chi tilted her head a bit, and frowned. What stories of hers could possibly interest Pan? What was there to say that would captivate her young mind? Pan's voice brought her out of her state.

"Please, Obaasan?" she pleaded, onyx eyes shining. Her face brightened suddenly, as an idea came to her. Gazing at Chi-Chi excitedly, she exclaimed, "I wanna story 'bout you…and Ojiisan when you were kids!"

Chi-Chi was glad that the child had made up her mind on what she exactly wanted to hear. She was also grateful that she could now tell a story that would interest the girl. Chi-Chi looked at Pan, and smiled. _You look just like your grandfather, _she thought softly. _So cute and irresistible._

"Okay," Chi-Chi agreed, putting the storybook away. She faced the four-year-old who now settled back beneath the blankets. "Once upon a time, there was a princess who lived on Frying Pan Mt., and her name was…"

"Obaasan!" Pan energetically finished.

Her grandmother laughed. "No! Her name was Chi-Chi. Now Chi-Chi was a peaceful child who lived in this huge, beautiful palace."

"Ooh, ooh!" Pan mused with excitement. "Since you were a princess, did you have lots of treasure that was all yours? Did you have lots of clothes 'n dresses? I bet you were so prettyful! Oh, did you have lots of servants that you could boss 'round?"

Chi-Chi smiled a bit, amused at Pan's questions. "Sort of. I did have some dresses and things. But my father had most of the treasure and did most of the ordering around."

"Oh, man… I wish I was a princess!" Pan said dreamily. "Okay…go on with the story."

"You would think everything was so fine there," Chi-Chi continued. "But there was a problem. Everyone feared Chi-Chi's father, the Great Ox-King."

She curled two of her fingers, forming "horns" and put them to the side of her head. Putting on an angry face, she went on, "He was an awesome fighter, but could be really mean. He chased away a lot of people, so his daughter became very lonely. But what she didn't know was that her father had a Dragonball."

"Yay!" Pan exclaimed. "Now he can wish to be nice!"

Chi-Chi laughed softly. "Not quite. Now some explorers came to Frying Pan Mt. to look for the Dragonball. They found that the place was very, very hot, and that was because a fire was always burning around there. Instead of finding the Dragonball, they ran into my father."

"They're in trouble now!" Pan commented, her eyes wide with interest. "I bet they were real scared! Cuz y'know, Great Ojii-san is real big. Oh…umm…where was Chi-Chi?"

"Yeah, they were scared. Remember that fire that always burned around there? Well, Chi-Chi was looking for something called the Bansho Fan."

"Ban-chow Fan?" Pan repeated. "What's that?"

Chi-Chi chuckled at her mispronunciation of the item. "The _Bansho_ Fan was…well, a fan. But it was a magical fan, Pan. This magical fan would be just the thing to put out the endless fire. But back to the others… Those explorers were in for a real surprise. Ox-King had the Dragonball, but there was no way he was handing it over. If it wasn't for one of those brave explorers talking things out, Ox-King probably would've gotten rid of them all."

Pan smiled widely. "I think I know who that one brave 'xplor was."

Chi-Chi smiled shyly. "Yeah. Let's just say this is one of those cases where it pays to know the right people. Ox-King recognized the Nimbus cloud that the brave explorer was riding and-"

"The candy cloud!" Pan interrupted.

"Huh?" Chi-Chi said.

"The candy cloud," Pan repeated. "The Nim'us looks like cotton candy, so I call it a candy cloud. Hey, can I have some cotton candy?"

Chi-Chi smiled and shook her head. "Tomorrow. Anyway, Ox-King found out who this brave explorer was, and he had a mission for him. He wanted him to go find his daughter." Pan snapped her fingers. "That's right! Chi-Chi was still out there lookin' for the Ban-chow Fan! Was it dangerful out there?"

"Yes," Chi-Chi answered. "It was _dangerous_ out there. You could get lost out there, and there were dinosaurs everywhere. Luckily, Chi-Chi was able to fight one or two off. But it had really been a long time, and there was no sign of the Bansho Fan. All of a sudden, a sweet voice called out to her. 'Hey, are you Chi-Chi?' it said. Chi-Chi looked up and saw her prince. He had wild, black hair, a cute face, a tail, and he rode on the magical cloud."

"Cool!" Pan said. "Then what?"

Chi-Chi smiled as the memories ran through her mind. "Chi-Chi liked this explorer a lot. Right then, her heart told her that this boy would be her very best friend and that she would love him forever. When she told the boy that she was Chi-Chi, she found that the boy had been looking for her. He explained only a little bit of what was going on, and made her come with him. They rode on the magical cloud, and when Chi-Chi learned his name, she knew she would never forget him."

_Of course, they were different reasons why she always remembered him and felt she was going to be his, _she thought wistfully, a shade of pink tinting her cheeks.

Pan confusedly looked up at her grandmother. Why was she blushing?

Chi-Chi caught Pan's look and was snapped out of her thoughts. She went on with the story, "He was her love, but they were separated for six years."

Pan gasped and counted on her fingers. "Six years! What happened?"

Chi-Chi leaned closer, making sure Pan was listening. "Well, they promised to marry, but they didn't meet until six years later at the Budokai. It was a long time, but Chi-Chi recognized Goku right away, and seemed to fall in love with him all over again. He was bigger, stronger, and cuter too."

Pan was in the middle of a yawn when she heard Chi-Chi's last sentence. "Cute?" she repeated with a giggle. "Cute like Mr. Fluffums?"

Chi-Chi glanced down at the bear and smiled a bit. "Uh, yes, Pan. Ojiisan was very cute then." _And now,_ she thought as she pictured her husband in her mind.

She continued, "It was a miracle that they both were at the tournament and that they would be fighting each other. Before the fight, Chi-Chi asked Goku if he knew who she was and what he promised. Goku forgot, and she got mad. She had yelled at him, but that didn't help at all. She lost that round."

"Man!" Pan pouted, rubbing her sleepy eyes. "Then what did you do, Obaasan?"

"It's really funny. Even after all that, Goku still kept his word about marrying Chi-Chi. They went on an adventure together before finally getting married. It was a beautiful, long ceremony, complete with cake and flowers and cherry blossom petals…"

Chi-Chi sighed dreamily and looked down at Pan, who seemed confused. She smiled. "Nevermind. Now you know the story of how Chi-Chi fell in love with Goku. The cute, little boy on his cloud who stole her heart away soon became her prince, her husband…" She trailed off, seeing Pan's eyes were already closed, and she had let out another yawn.

"My husband. This is my story," she finished. Pan rolled over, and Chi-Chi knew she was asleep. She bent over and kissed Pan on her forehead. Then she ruffled her dark bangs before standing up to finally leave.

She whispered, "Goodnight, Pan. Maybe you'll find your prince someday."

Owari.


End file.
